~ Count Your Blessings ~

All a buzz… this can be the busiest time of year for a lot of us. We seem to want to cram as much as possible into a few short weeks of time. We know from past experience what this does to us and those around us, but we seem to get caught up into it year after year. Still, even with all the added tasks and outings that can drain the energy out of you, if you can manage to find those still, quiet moments to contemplate the “reason for the season”, it’s undeniable what a special time of year it really is. Sitting mornings by the warmth of the fire, with only the glow of the Christmas lights interrupting the darkness, this is my time each day to reflect on all of the blessings that have been lavishly poured out on me…and, I’m grateful!

We celebrated one of those many blessings over the weekend. Our grandson was turning five and we all gathered together, enjoying the special little man that he is.

The background to this is….”Nana makes cakes”, according to John Michael. So, he decides what his party theme is for the year and…Nana makes a cake to go with it! What someone failed to explain to him was, for the previous generation, when Nana was Mom, there were several shows that were “off limits”. Among the list was, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which to my amazement has come back around full force…and guess who likes it!?!( I have two older nephews that will enjoy how the tables have turned, and I quote…”stupid Little House On The Prairie!”). Well, since Nana is a much softer touch now than she was as Mom, the quest was on for the,  TMNT (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle) cake pan. I have since found out that I needed to start this search much sooner, instead of dragging my feet. Wilton has retired their 1989 TMNT cake pan and now it is considered “vintage”. Being the lover of old things that I am, you would think this would make me happy. No, what this means is that this cake pan that I really don’t want in my collection is two or three times it’s original price! When my Amazon search turned up one for over $100.00, I gave the search over to my “ebaying” husband. He found one with the auction up that night and won the bid, Yay him! Unfortunately, it wasn’t shipped out for three days! So, when Saturday morning came around and the TMNT cake pan wasn’t in the morning mail, I knew the worst had come! (haha) I would have to get creative around a theme that as a mom I had opposed. Alas, Nana couldn’t disappoint, so Papa and I were off on a shopping trip for a cake topper. (Might I add, there are wedding cakes with less expensive cake toppers than this.)

He liked his cake…’nuff said!

P.S. The “TMNT” cake pan came the day after the party!